Best Medicine
by Laura x Tennant
Summary: Story, going to be about 4 chapters, I think. The Doctor has to put his medicating skills to the test while treating Rose's injury after she gets attacked by a Trefof. They flirt a bit. Other stuff happens. Good ol' ten/rose romance, basically :D x
1. Chapter 1

**A/N: Hiya! This is a little story about the Doctor tending to Rose's injuries after she's been attacked by some alien monster guy (yeah, the alien is not that important. Not much plot to this, just needed it to hurt her [not that I want her to be hurt, obviously, but it makes the story...] so that the Doctor can fix her up :D) All of this inevitably leads to a bit of flirting ;P and stuff...Hope you enjoy! Please review! Love you all xxxxxxx**

**Best Medicine**

**(As prescribed by the Doctor)**

They got back to the TARDIS, and without a word, the Doctor led a tired and bleeding Rose down the corridor to the infirmary. She sat down on a backless stool and looked up at him confusion.

The Doctor looked at her pointedly. Rose furrowed her brow as if asking 'What?'

"Take your shirt off, then," he instructed casually.

"You what now?" she retorted in surprise. Ok, so maybe this was where he started to show some sort of interest in her, _finally. _Although, in the medical room? That's a bit odd. Maybe he has some sort of fetish or-

"You're bleeding. You need to let me help you," he explained, in a tone that implied there would be no arguments.

- or not. Ah. "Ohhhhh," she replied in realisation, slightly underwhelmed if she was honest. She'd thought, for a moment there, that they were finally getting somewhere. But she'd conveniently forgotten about just being attacked by a Trefof. And then she'd let her imagination run away with her. Whoops. "Ok."

As she unbuttoned her blood-stained checked shirt, he pretended not to take any real interest in what lay beneath it. He stood in front of her, motionless, an impassive expression adorning his features, his arms folded, waiting patiently...

Despite it being obvious that he clearly wasn't interested in her _that _way, Rose still flushed under his intent gaze. Although, she was slightly insulted that his eyes had not once slipped from hers to...well, lower regions.

...He swallowed, refusing to allow himself to simply take her in his arms and kiss her, and knelt in front of her, a wet cloth in his hand. He finally looked at her bare stomach, skimming his eyes of her bra-covered breasts as he lowered his gaze from her face, and he tried to focus on getting Rose better. Rather than on those...other thoughts.

With the cloth, he wiped at the harsh gash that the Trefof had given her a few inches left of her belly button, cleansing away the blood. Gently, he placed a cotton pad over the cut, pressing more firmly against it in an attempt to stop the bleeding. He knew he'd have to stitch it up in a minute; it was quite insistent. The wound must have stung as he pressed down on it, because she let out a gasp, then shuddered when the fingers of his other hand traced over the rest of her stomach, checking for any other cuts or bruises. Just checking. That's all.

Rose herself was busy trying to control her breathing and racing heart rate. She couldn't let him notice that that was the affect that he was having on her, simply by tending to her wound.

He looked up at her apologetically, all the while setting his jaw and smiling tightly, begging his brain to make his eyes look merely concerned rather than lustful as he drank her almost-naked torso in. "Sorry, Rose, but I'm going to have to stitch this up."

She bit her lip, but nodded. "That's ok." She trusted him. Completely.

"Right-o then," he said cheerfully, trying to put her at ease. He reached for the medical equipment, and moved his hand and the pad from her wound. He swallowed nervously, shot a brief smile at his companion-best-friend-and-_nothing-more_, and set to work. Rose closed her eyes and bit down harder on her lip as a distraction.

It hurt a bit, but she knew the Doctor was fully capable of doing what he needed to; looking after her. And at least it was him, doing this. Anyone else and she'd have been mortified; his hands were skirting dangerously close to other areas. But she'd rather have his hands there than anyone else. Well. Obviously. It's just a shame that it was under these circumstances, really.

Before she could stop herself, her hands slid into his hair, during her heavy contemplation of just _how _she could find out whether Time Lords really _danced,_ without him finding out that she was really wondering if it was just _her _he was averse to in _that _way. She felt him jolt in surprise at her touch, which in actual fact led her to realise what she was doing, and made _her _jolt in surprise. But she didn't remove her hands.

"Rose? I'm trying to concentrate, here," he told her, a teasing smile evident in his voice even if she couldn't see his face.

"What, does this distract you?" she asked innocently, purposefully running her fingers through his luscious brown locks even more, and tugging.

The Doctor moaned a little, but covered it up quickly with a deep chuckle. "Maybe," he murmured.

"Really?" she asked hopefully.

"Yeah, well, I'm a bit ticklish," he rationalised.

"Oh. I just thought you found it erotic or something."

His head snapped up in surprise, his eyes wide. All he was greeted with was her eyes closed and a small smirk playing on her lips. "Rose, I..." he trailed off.

"I was just joking, Doctor," she said sincerely, giggling internally at his reaction.

"Yep, I knew that, course you were," he mumbled, his eyes retreating back to her wound.

She opened her eyes cautiously, and watched him. He really did take care of her well, and he looked adorable the way he was carefully sorting her out, his eyes concentrating on her, inspecting her through his glasses.

Although, she supposed, it was his fault she'd gotten the wound in the first place, really. So he probably felt guilty and was now trying to make it up to her.

"There we go, all done," he murmured, tracing his finger over the stitched gash in her side. She shivered at his touch and he allowed himself a small smile in recognition of the fact that he caused her to do that. Then, he realised what an insensitive idiot he was being, considering he'd gotten her hurt back on that awful planet.

"I'm so sorry - " he began.

" – it's fine. Really. Don't worry, Doctor. Anyway, you've made me all better now, so everything's good," she told him. As an afterthought, she removed her hands from his hair, realising that she hadn't yet done so.

He was still kneeling in front of her, his eyes now resembling that of a lost little puppy, magnified slightly by his sexy glasses, and she gave him a reassuring smile. "I'm _fine," _she emphasised.

He tugged at his ear. "Well, did it get you anywhere else?" he asked, his eyes roving over her body. If she hadn't known better; if she hadn't known that this was the Doctor, who didn't like her like _that,_ Rose would've said he had an almost hungry look in his eyes. But she knew that that must be what he looked like when he was concerned about her health or whatever.

Yeah, the Doctor knew that that wasn't it, but he wasn't going to tell her that.

Rose suddenly winced in pain, and he instinctively grabbed her hand in his.

"What is it?" he asked, his voice panicked.


	2. Chapter 2

**A/N: Thanks to everyone for all the reviews, alerts and favourites :D I really appreciate that! Hope you enjoy this chapter. Laura xxx**

**Best Medicine**

**Part 2**

"Oh, it's...owww. Sorry, I thought it would be alright, but I hurt my ankle back there, and I had shooting pain go right through me just then," she told him. He narrowed his eyes at her, tutting in disapproval that she hadn't told him before. At his look, she defended, "It didn't hurt before."

"Ok, let me take a look," he murmured. He failed to mention that she could probably put her shirt back on if she liked. Because...you know. He might have been a 900-odd years old alien who happened to _just _travel with his young human friend Rose Tyler, but he was still a man. And he quite appreciated this view he had of her right now (minus the blood etc), considering he had never seen her like this before and probably would never see her like this again.

He sat back on his heels and made a gesture towards his legs. She lifted her own leg and put her bare foot on his thigh, and before she could do it herself, he was rolling up the denim of her jeans for her. He took her ankle in his hands and inspected it closely. Tenderly, he touched different points and asked her where it hurt.

"Owww!" she exclaimed.

"There then, I take it," he said.

"Mmhmm," she replied, gritting her teeth.

"Push down."

She did as she was told and put pressure onto his thigh. "Owww!" she exclaimed, louder this time.

"Whoops, sorry," he murmured. "Maybe you shouldn't have done that. I'm a bit off with my medicating skills."

"Now he tells me," she muttered under her breath, but nevertheless she smiled at his lopsided, sheepish grin.

"You're not going to be able to walk on that anytime soon, Rose Tyler." Her eyebrows rose as if in a challenge. She did that sometimes; tried to defy him, go against his warnings. "So don't even try!" he instructed, pointing his finger at her. "I know what you're like. Trying to pretend you're not hurt just so you get to go back to saving the universe straight away. But you need _rest_."

She mock-scowled at him. "I just don't want to miss out on anything," she sulked. She hated not being with him. It was funny; she'd never been the needy, clingy type as a girlfriend to anyone else, and it wasn't like she _was _with the Doctor like _that_, but every moment they were apart, she missed him. The thought of him going off saving the universe without her made her want to shout in frustration, if she was honest.

"You won't 'miss out on anything.' This is a time machine, remember? We can spend as much time lazing around in here waiting for your ankle to heal as we like, and no one need ever know," he said, the end of his sentence dripping with exaggerated mysteriousness. He even tapped his nose and winked.

"We?" she asked.

His brow furrowed. "What else would - oh! You mean, why not just you?"

"Yeah. You're not one for 'lazing around.' You'll be so bored stuck in here."

He looked at her as if she'd just grown another head. "No I won't. Not with your stimulating company and sparkling wit," he told her cheerfully. Truthfully.

"So you're going to pass on the adventure and start being all domestic, then?" she asked him disbelievingly.

He considered this a moment. "Yep!" he answered, popping the 'p.'

"Why?" she asked incredulously, wrinkling her nose in distaste.

"Because I want to make sure you do as you're told and keep resting. And I'd only be lonely without you, so..."

Her eyes softened. "Oh," she replied gently.

"But you know, if you don't want me here..." he trailed off, pretending to consider getting up and leaving her.

"No!" she shouted, possibly a bit too loudly in the quiet of the TARDIS. "I mean, no, don't go. I'd...I...just...stay. Please."

He smiled at her warmly. "And someone's going to have to carry you around everywhere," he added, and her eyes widened. "You know – to the loo and the bath and all that." He smirked at her outraged expression. "Don't worry, I promise that when I help you into the bath, I won't look."

"Doctor!" she shrieked, and he laughed loudly as a blush coloured her face.

"Well, you're not going to be able to do it yourself, are you? So, unless you're planning on going several days without washing, I don't see you have an alternative choice," he told her, waggling his eyebrows.

She sighed. "Suppose so," she grumbled.

"You're complaining like it's a bad thing or something," the Doctor smirked.

"Not for you, maybe," she replied, raising an eyebrow.

"I've practically seen everything anyway," he dismissed, gesturing to her nearly-bare torso.

"Um, no you really haven't," she retorted, laughing at his flippant remarks about carrying her _naked _into the bath. He really didn't have a clue, did he? Stupid alien.

"Well, like I said. I'll close my eyes," he declared.

"Yeah, and then you'd end up tripping over and landing right on top of me, and wouldn't that be just lovely and awkward?" she said sarcastically.

"Not awkward. Lovely, yes," he grinned, and winked at her.

"Doctor," she said, sighing exasperatedly. She didn't mind flirting with him. Loved it in fact. But it'd be better if she knew he meant all this stuff though. In reality, he'd be Mr Completely Oblivious, just like usual.

"Rose," he said, matching her tone.

She glared at him, and he burst out laughing. Unfortunately for Rose, the Doctor's laughter was contagious, and she, despite her frustration, began to laugh too. He was a stupid alien, but he was her stupid alien, after all. Well. In her mind, anyway.

The laughter faded out and silence descended upon them for once.

They regarded each other for a moment, Rose looking down at the Doctor from her seated position wondering what she'd done to deserve a...well, a _friend, _like him.

Funnily enough, the Doctor was thinking the same thing about her.

"Rose..." he murmured softly, hardly realising himself that he had spoken aloud until Rose answered him.

"Yes?" she replied, suddenly aware that the atmosphere had changed somehow. Well, not changed exactly...more like, intensified. There was a sense of apprehension in the air; an electricity passing between them as they looked at each other.

Rose was confused, but the Doctor knew. Something was changing tonight. Or maybe, _intensifying..._


	3. Chapter 3

**Best Medicine**

**Part 3**

He cleared his throat and looked down at his hands still holding Rose's ankle. Except, he noticed with slight shock, he was actually sort of caressing it. Had been for quite some time, really. Stroking lightly with his thin fingers, sending shivers down her spine. Upon noticing these ministrations, he paused them, and let out a long breath he hadn't known he'd been holding. He lifted his eyes to meet hers again. "So..." he began. He cleared his throat once more when he realised how husky his voice sounded. That wouldn't do. "So, shall I bandage this up then?" he asked her politely.

She blinked at him, having completely forgotten about her twisted ankle. Realisation dawned when he lifted her foot in question and pain shot up her leg again. "Yes please," she answered, wincing in pain again.

"I'll get you some painkillers in a minute," he told her as he dressed her ankle.

"Thanks," she replied. She shivered again when his hand brushed her calf, which he noticed instantly.

"You must be cold sitting there without your top on," he commented lightly.

A faint blush tainted her cheeks. "Yeah, well it's all bloody and that; I don't fancy putting it back on."

He finished bandaging her ankle and shrugged off his jacket. "Here you go. Don't want you catching a cold as well, do we?" he said, handing it to her.

She took it from him and gulped when their fingers brushed briefly. "Ta," she muttered, putting it over her shoulders rather than on, and clutching it closed at the front with one hand. She inhaled the smell that was purely her Doctor, and relished at how close she felt to him, just by being wrapped up in his jacket. Without realising, she nuzzled her nose into it, closing her eyes, to which the Doctor watched with utter fascination.

For some reason, he felt all weird inside seeing her wearing his jacket. Like...all warm and fuzzy and strange and _human._

How odd.

He stared at her for a few moments, then coughed awkwardly. "So, anywhere else that needs my attention?" he asked, before his brain had a chance to check the words.

Her eyes snapped open and she raised her eyebrows suggestively. "Weeelll..." she teased, drawing out the word in the way she'd heard him do so sexily so often.

"My _medical _attention," he amended, grinning at her impishly.

She giggled. "No. No, I'm fine," she told him.

"Are you sure?" he asked curiously. "Because I should check, really, shouldn't I? You've got a history of pretending not to be injured when really you are..."

She couldn't help but notice the hopeful tone of his voice this time, and she wondered if maybe, just maybe, he wasn't as oblivious to her in _that _way as she first assumed. Therefore, she couldn't resist the urge to tease him. So she didn't.

"I reckon you'd like that, eh Doctor? Checking me out," she said, her tongue caught between her teeth in the way she smiled when she was teasing him.

"Checking you _over," _he corrected, rolling his eyes. But she could see that she'd startled him, because he was avoiding meeting her eyes now.

"Suuurrre," she said sarcastically. "You wanna know what I think?"

He had a feeling that he really, really didn't.

"What's that?"

But he couldn't resist asking.

"I think: this was all a big ploy to get me half-naked."

"You're not half-naked," he countered.

She slid his jacket back off her shoulders.

He swallowed thickly. "You're still not - " But before he could finish, a sudden boldness took over Rose and she twisted her arm behind her back and undid the clasp of her bra, slipping it off quickly. He stopped talking and simply stared at her, open-mouthed, his eyes wide behind his sexy glasses.

"I am now," she murmured, looking at him intently.

"Yes. Yes. Um...wh...wha...what?" he stuttered, seemingly making no apology for the fact that he was blatantly staring at her breasts rather than talking to her face.

"I think you should check my back, Doctor," she told him, as if justifying her removal of her bra. "It feels like I've got some scratches or something..."

He blinked. Once. Twice. Then he looked back up to her face again. "Right! Yes, yes. Of course," he muttered, setting her foot on the floor gently and getting to his feet. Seeing as she wouldn't have been able to turn around properly without hurting her ankle further, the Doctor swiftly walked behind her and couched down to the floor again.

He knew no good could come of this. He was going to cross over those boundaries once and for all as soon as he started touching her again.

But he didn't care.

He couldn't stop.

He brushed some of her hair across her shoulder to look at the back of her neck, stroking over her shoulder blades with his fingers, then further down her back, his hands sweeping across her skin as she shivered beneath his touch, searching for the scratches he knew weren't really there. He stopped when he reached the waistband of her jeans, and let out a long breath, that ghosted over her skin making her shiver even more.

"No scratches here," he murmured softly.

She was about to retort when suddenly she was rendered speechless by the feel of the Doctor's lips against her skin. He pressed a gentle kiss to her back, then another, then another, following the path that his hands just took only in the reverse, so that he ended up returning to the back of her neck. He nuzzled a point behind her ear with his nose before kissing that too, and she gasped sharply. He brought his hands up to rest at her hips, his thumbs stroking the sensitive skin there softly.

"I think you might be right," he whispered against the shell of her ear.

"Huh?" is all she could say in response.

"I do rather like checking you out," he told her seriously, and she giggled.

He wrapped his arms around her middle in a backwards hug, and she rested her hands on his at her stomach, as he gently nipped and licked at the point where her neck met shoulder. She let out a soft moan and leaned into him.

He ran his tongue across the shell of her ear and then sucked at the lobe, and she shuddered in his arms.

"You're _licking _me," Rose muttered, partly in mock-disgust, partly in appreciation, and mostly in wonder.

"Yep," he replied, chuckling as she turned her head slightly, and his tongue swept across her jaw line. "Taste quite nice, you do," he told her in earnest.

She smiled. "Glad you think so," she retorted teasingly.

"You're hair's tickling me, though," he half-complained, still grinning madly in wonderment at how their conversation had led him to do this.

"Then maybe you should come around here and lick me face to face," she laughed.

"Maybe I don't have to," he muttered to himself, remembering that the stool she was sitting on could spin around. He swung her around to face him, and she didn't care that her ankle hurt a bit from a bit of impact against the Doctor's leg as he spun her, because now she could look into his deep brown eyes. Which, she noticed with great pleasure, were now mostly black. And he was still wearing those glasses she loved so much.

He was kneeling between her legs now. His hands came up to hold her at the waist again, and Rose pulled him closer by his tie.

(She'd always wanted to do that.)

They looked at each other for a long moment, faces inches apart.

**...**

**A/N: The End. Lol, jokes! Not really! One more chapter to go now. Anyways, hope you enjoyed this one. Thanks for all your reviews so far, please review this chapter too and let me know what you think of it :D **

**Laura x**


	4. Chapter 4

**A/N: Hey, me again. Now. I should think you all know where this story is going. There's nothing explicit or anything in this, but you can't avoid the fact that they are definitely going to **_**dance **_**in the end**__**as it were. Just want to warn you of that. It's nowhere near 'Mature' rating or anything, but I guess it could push some peoples' boundaries. Anyways, I hope you like it :D It's light and fluffy and romantic (hopefully) rather than turning it into a smutty, OOC sort of scene. Hopefully. Please review! Love you all xxx**

**Best Medicine **

**Part 4**

"What's happening?" she asked him honestly. She didn't want to end up feeling rejected if this was a one-time thing. She didn't want to go from this back to how things normally were between them if he suddenly decided he'd finished playing this flirting game. She wanted to know exactly what was going on inside his head.

He took off his glasses and rubbed his eyes a little, but he didn't falter from his position, his face still hovering close to hers. "I don't really know," he whispered as an answer, his voice low and somewhat contemplative. "But it's something. Something that should've happened a long time ago."

She swallowed nervously. "And something that should happen a lot more in the future?" she murmured.

"Oh yes," he replied, resting his forehead against hers tenderly. His eyes fluttered closed. He frowned contemplatively. "That's...that's if you...erm...well, that's if you want it to?" he added, wanting her to have a chance to get out of this if she felt he was pushing her into something she didn't want to do.

She rolled her eyes, which he didn't see, but could somehow sense she was doing.

"Don't roll your eyes at me, Rose Tyler," he accused mock-sternly.

"Then don't ask stupid questions," she retorted.

"I'm simply being gentlemanly," he defended.

"I don't want you to be a gentleman," she replied, grinning impishly.

He opened one eye and lifted his opposite eyebrow, which was a truly comical yet exceedingly clever thing to watch someone accomplish, hence why Rose giggled right in his face.

"Well that's lucky," he said. "Because I'll tell you a secret. I'm not." He waggled his eyebrows at her saucily and she grinned again.

"Alons-y then," she told him, to which he chuckled deep in his throat. "Get on with it."

A second later and his mouth was on hers. Gentle at first. Then things turned more needy, more lustful, more passionate. Her lips parted in an appreciative gasp and he delved his tongue in to explore. She thrust her hands into his hair once more and he moaned into her mouth. Pulling back slightly, she whispered, "Knew that turned you on."

He laughed and pulled her lips back to his, his left hand running up her side, his right tracing patterns across her bare back. He lifted her right leg to wrap around his waist, and Rose took the opportunity to push him closer to her body; but he didn't move her left in case he hurt her ankle. He was thoughtful like that.

She couldn't believe what was happening. There they were, having a normal day, chasing aliens, then being chased _by _aliens, hobbling back to the TARDIS, him making her better, her consistently feeling like she was losing a one-sided battle (falling for the Doctor; trying not to pounce on him, etc etc) just like usual, when _suddenly _the realisation that he felt exactly the same way dawned on her and then here they were, snogging as though their lives depended on it, her half-naked and him touching her, like she'd wanted for so long, and he was really into this, she knew that now, into her, and he wasn't so oblivious anymore and he was affected by this as much as she was, maybe more so, she could feel it, and she was pressed flush against him, bare breasts to his thin shirt, and she couldn't breathe and it was brilliant.

Eventually, they parted in order to take in some deep breaths, their foreheads still pressed together, his hands still wandering across her upper body.

"Doctor," she murmured.

"Yes, Rose?" he answered.

"Do you think we could..." she paused, swallowing thickly. "Um, take this somewhere more comfortable?"

He smiled and nodded gently, instantly scooping her up in his arms.

"You don't have to carry me," she giggled.

"Yes I do. You can't walk on that ankle. I believe what I originally prescribed for you was rest and painkillers."

"Yeah, but you also said that your medicating skills were a bit off. I think you got the prescription wrong. What I _really _need is a nice handsome alien to take me to his room and worship me," she told him cheekily, winking.

"Hmmm, weeellll, that can be arranged. Now suit you alright, Miss Tyler?" he asked her, carrying her down a corridor she'd never been down before.

"God, yeah." She even bit her lip in excitement.

"That's good," he replied.

"Yeah, it is. And do you know the best of it?"

"What's that?" he queried, an eyebrow raised.

"We live in a time machine, so we can spend as long as we want doing whatever we want, and no one need ever know," she declared, echoing some of his earlier words.

He grinned at her, stopping outside his bedroom door. "You ready for this, Rose Tyler? You're entering a room where no one else has ever been before, you know."

"I feel special," she giggled, kissing him soundly. He almost lost his balance, but leant against the wall while he kissed her back, just as forcefully. His hand found the door handle, his mouth still attached to Rose's as he carried her into the room and gently placed her in the middle of his bed.

The Doctor disengaged himself from Rose's lips briefly to trail a succession of gorgeous kisses to her neck, her collar bone, her breasts, her stomach. He then found her lips again, kissing her sweetly before pulling back.

"Rose..." he whispered, followed by a silent question in his eyes, and he took her nod as the seal of approval to what they were about to do, especially when she loosened his tie and started to unbutton his shirt.

He stared into her eyes as she worked on divulging him of his shirt, and she looked so mischievous that he couldn't help but smile as widely as his face would allow. She was just so beautiful, and so perfectly _his._

And then, there was bare skin on bare skin and they'd never felt so alive. Abruptly, their soft caresses and gentle kisses were replaced by a frenzied passion, as they realised that they were finally experiencing what they had wanted and dreamt of for entirely too long a time. In their ardent haste to remove the rest of their clothes, Rose's ankle got knocked and she shouted out in pain. But that pain was short-lived and as she sensed the Doctor trying to pull away and stop to check if she was alright, she tried to reassure him that she was absolutely fine, so -

"So will you _please_ just make love to me? Right now."

Which seemed to work. He wasn't going to argue with that, especially as she sounded rather insistent on the matter, and to be honest, they were both getting desperate now and so he abandoned trying to be gentlemanly and became the un-gentleman Rose had requested for earlier.

And in that moment, in that beautiful instant, where he joined with Rose for the first time, some truly wonderful words - words that made her heart soar to unparalleled heights – fell from his lips in a whisper.

"I think I'm in love with you."

And the universe span around them as they moved together. For once – for this momentous occasion – it was unburdening. For once, it wasn't in need of saving. For once, the Doctor could love his Rose in ways he once thought were impossible for them.

And for once, the Doctor slept a full night's sleep, his arms wrapped tightly around Rose; content and truly, truly happy.

It turned out that laughter and love, the things that the Doctor and Rose were all about really, were the only medicine either of them needed to get better, mentally and physically.

And it would be impossible to defy them on that.


End file.
